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One Factor Driving Bank of America (BAC) Stock Down Today

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Bank of America (BAC - Get Report) dipped Friday, one day after CLSA analyst Mike Mayo slashed his full-year 2014 earnings per share estimates on the bank to 55 cents from $1.

Mayo doubted Bank of America has put aside enough money for a possible settlement with the U.S. Justice Department regarding mortgage-backed securities. He believes the bank has $2.4 billion for a settlement, but it could cost approximately $8 billion.

Mayo also contended Bank of America directors and executives gave insufficient answers during the annual shareholders meeting on Wednesday.

TheStreet Ratings team rates BANK OF AMERICA CORP as a Buy with a ratings score of B. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate BANK OF AMERICA CORP (BAC) a BUY. This is driven by multiple strengths, which we believe should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks we cover. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its expanding profit margins, notable return on equity and solid stock price performance. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

The gross profit margin for BANK OF AMERICA CORP is currently very high, coming in at 84.82%. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Regardless of the strong results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of -1.08% is in-line with the industry average.

BANK OF AMERICA CORP has experienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, BANK OF AMERICA CORP increased its bottom line by earning $0.91 versus $0.25 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($0.95 versus $0.91).

Regardless of the drop in revenue, the company managed to outperform against the industry average of 11.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 4.6%. Weakness in the company's revenue seems to have hurt the bottom line, decreasing earnings per share.

The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Commercial Banks industry and the overall market on the basis of return on equity, BANK OF AMERICA CORP underperformed against that of the industry average and is significantly less than that of the S&P 500.

Looking at where the stock is today compared to one year ago, we find that it is not only higher, but it has also clearly outperformed the rise in the S&P 500 over the same period, despite the company's weak earnings results. Looking ahead, the stock's rise over the last year has already helped drive it to a level which is relatively expensive compared to the rest of its industry. We feel, however, that the other strengths this company displays justify these higher price levels.

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